WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 

AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS 

BEN,  ANTHONIE  and  FRANCIS 


FRANK  A.  KENDALL 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 

OF  CALIFORNIA 

BEQUEST  OF 
PROFESSOR  JOHN  S.  P.  TATLOCK 


WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 
AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS 


WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 

AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS 

BEN,  ANTHONIE  and  FRANCIS 


By 

FRANK  A.  KENDALL 


W.  A.  BUTTERFIELD 

BOSTON 

1911 


Copyright,  jgil 
By  Frank  A.  Kendall 


u 


Hc't     Cd^ 


f3Zf 


"  Firft  my  feare  then  my  curfie,  laft  my  fpeech. 
My  feare,  is  your  difpleafure,  my  curfy,  my  duty,  &  my  fpeech, 
to  beg  your  pardons  :  if  you  looke  for  a  good  fpeech  now,  you 
vndo  me,  for  what  I  haue  to  fay  is  of  mine  owne  making,  and 
what  indeed  ( I  fhould  fay )  wil  ( I  doubt )  proue  mine  own  mar- 
ring :  but  to  the  purpofe,  and  fo  to  the  venture." 


^ 


IVilUam  Shakespeare 

And  His  Three  Friends 


WHAT  IS  AN  ACROSTIC 

What  is  an  acrostic  ?  We  know  what  is  meant  by  the  word 
today.     Had  it  formerly  a  broader  meaning? 

In  1682,  in  the  course  of  a  merciless  and  withering  satire, 
John  Dryden  wrote  in  "  Macflecknoe"  — 

"  Thy  genius  calls  thee  not  to  purchase  fame 
In  keen  iambics,  but  mild  anagram. 
Leave  writing  plays,  and  choose  for  thy  command 
Some  peaceful  province  in  Acrostic  land. 
Where  thou  mayest  Wings  display  and  Altars  raise 
And  torture  one  poor  word  ten  thousand  ways." 

The  satire  was  directed  against  Shadwell ;  the  references  were 
to  certain  literary  tricks  which  Dryden  affects  to  despise  ;  and  it  is 
probable  that  he  had  especially  in  mind  George  Herbert  (1593- 
1632),  selections  from  whose  writings  justify  literally  the  mention 
of  "anagram,"  "Wings"  and  "Altars." 

"MILD  ANAGRAM" 

An  anagram,  as  the  reader  knows,  consists  of  the  formation 
of  a  word  from  the  identical  letters  of  another  word.  Here  is  one 
of  Herbert's  which  is  certainly  mild  :  — 


.      f   Mary   > 
^■\    Armt   l^""' 

Ow  well  her  name  an  Army  doth  prcfenli 
In  whom  the  Lordofbojisdid.  pitch  his  tent! 


H 


8 


WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 


"WINGS  DISPLAY" 
The  following  poem  of  Herbert's  appears  in  two  stanzas  on 
two  facing  pages,  under  the  title  "  Eafter  wings."  It  is  an 
example  of  a  reverent  and  devotional  attitude  of  mind  expressed  in 
what  at  first  sight  seems  to  us  a  fanciful  and  almost  trivial  form ;  but 
as  scholarly  and  balanced  a  critic  as  Professor  Palmer  finds  in  this 
poem  a  decadence  and  growth  in  the  thought  of  the  lines  corre- 
sponding to  their  varied  length.  * 


34  The  Church, 

f  Eafter  wings. 


The  Church 
^  Eafter  wings. 


35 


ntt 


Ei.   a-  S 

-.,  "-s  o 

c"  „  s 

2    o  c= 

3-     O. 

ai   5' 


a 
3 


»■  3 


ST-     S> 

'»    S 

^  2 


S    g   5 
.S   cw    »• 

s-w  s>  q 
"    B    £-  2 

S    S  "^  & 
B    o*  » 

O      S>    S- 

5r>  » 

3    S 

*       » 

9 
O. 

o 


3 
o 


> 

3* 

3    >T3 

r 

n 

#-» 

3 

Moftt 
With 

[y   tender  age  in   fo 

And  ftill  with  fickneffi 

Thou  didft  fo  punifli 

this  day  thy 
mp  my  win 
all  advance 

o 

o 
o 
3 
a- 

f 

8 

2t 
5' 
s 
n 

1.^ 

a- 
n 
n 

K 

3 

f»  *'    < 

»  »    q 

f%    5 

a    »    o 
a    s    « 
o    a. 

ric: 

thine, 

flight 

■  It 

B- 

'I 

1 

I 

Eafter 


H.  Ba- 


»  "  The  form  of  this  poem  is  not  dictated  by  imitative  considerations  merely,  but  —  as  usual  with 
Herbert  —  is  shaped  by  the  subject,  in  this  case  decline  and  enlargement." 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS  9 

"ALTARS  RAISE" 

Herbert  also  wrote  a  poem  entitled  "  The  Altar."  The  form 
which  these  lines  fill  needs  no  explanation,  but  like  the  other  poem, 
it  shows  the  effect  on  a  devout  mind  of  the  current  love  for  the 


curious. 


^be  Church. 


-SjuWfiJcsSs&feSiiS^^ 


The  Altar. 

A  broken  Altar,  Lord ,  thy  fervant  reares , 

Made  of  a  heart ,   and  cemented  with  tearet : 

Whofe  parts  are  as  thy  hand  did  frame; 

No  workmans  tool  hath  touch'd  the  fame. 

A  H  £  A  R  T  alone 

Is    fach  a     ftone. 

As     nothing     but 

Thy  pow'r  doth  cut. 

Wherefore  each  part 

Of  my  hard  heart 

Meets  in  this  frame. 

To  praife  thy  name. 

That  ii  I  chance  to  hold  my  peace, 

Thefe  ftones  to  praife  thee  may  not  ceafe. 

O  let  thy  bleffed   Sacrifice  be  mine. 

And    fan£tifie    this    Altar    to    be    thine. 


These  examples  show  what  attention  literary  men  paid  to  mere 
outward  form  while  still  treating  their  subjects  with  care  and  force 
and  even  with  reverence.  They  also  show  the  control  of  the 
printer  that  the  author  was  forced  to  exercise  in  order  to  be  assured 
that  his  purpose  would  be  fulfilled.  But  the  chief  object  in 
presenting  them  here  is  to  show  the  breadth  of  "Acrostic  land," 
and  that  the  word  "acrostic"  was  applied  generally  to  literary 
tricks. 


lo  WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 

"TORTURE  ONE  WORD  TEN  THOUSAND  WAYS" 

I  am  in  doubt  as  to  what  is  meant  by  the  line  in  "  Macflecknoe  " — 
"  torture  one  poor  word  ten  thousand  ways." 

Perhaps  a  clue  is  furnished  in  a  Latin  poem  of  Herbert's 
where  a  series  of  anagrams  on  the  word  "Roma"  occurs  entitled 

(      Oram  Maro 

Roma ;  Anagr.  I     Ramo  Armo 

\     Mora  Amor 

Another  clue  to  the  meaning  of  the  line  "  torture  one  poor 
word  ten  thousand  ways  "  may  perhaps  be  found  in  a  tortuous  form 
of  acrostic  which  has  lately  attracted  some  attention. 

MR.  BOOTH'S  BOOK 

A  work  written  by  Mr.  William  Stone  Booth  *  and  published 
two  years  ago  last  May  is  worthy  of  much  more  study  and  more 
careful  attention,  even  on  the  part  of  those  who  would  not  agree 
with  its  apparent  conclusions,  than  has  been  given  to  it.  After 
some  interesting  chapters  on  the  use  and  users  of  curious  literary 
devices,  such  as  anagrams,  ciphers,  and  acrostics,  and  on  the 
currency  of  anonymity  and  pseudonymity,  Mr.  Booth  discloses  an 
"  acrostic  "  method  of  structurally  concealing  words,  names,  or  short 
statements  within  the  text  of  a  stanza,  page,  or  passage,  a  sort  of 
"  Omnia  per  omnia"  without  necessarily  distorting  the  structure 
or  sense  of  the  passage  itself. 

THE  ACROSTIC  METHOD 

The  method  is  simple,  absolutely  inflexible  and  easy  to  apply 
either  in  "  inserting  "  or  in  "  extracting  "  the  hidden  word  or  phrase. 
The  acrostics  appear  usually  in  three  forms  :  — 

On  Initials. 

On  Terminals,  (i.e.  on  the  letters  at  either  end  of 

the  words  of  the  text). 
On  all  the  letters  of  all  words. 

*  Some  Acnxtic  Signaturet  of  Francis  Bacon.     Houghton,  Mifflin  Co. 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS  ii 

Whichever  of  these  acrostics  appears,  the  rule  for  finding  them 
is  the  same,  viz :  — 

Begin  with  a  suspicion  or  assumption  or  with  a  suggestion 
from  the  text,  and  having  assumed  the  form  and  the  word  or  words 
of  the  acrostic,  take  the  first  letter  required  and  then,  in  order,  the 
letters  of  the  assumed  words  in  the  order  in  which  they  arc  needed 
and  in  which  they  first  appear  in  the  text,  following  the  text  for- 
ward on  one  line  and  backward  on  the  next,  so  that  if  the  text  were 
taken  by  each  end  and,  as  it  were,  pulled  out,  the  text  would 
appear  as  a  consecutive  string ;  hence  the  name  "  String  acrostic.  " 
One  must  not  pass  a  needed  letter  in  order  to  make  progress 
possible  later  in  the  text,  but  after  checking  one  needed  letter  must 
check  the  next  needed  letter  as  he  comes  to  it. 

It  is  evident  that  if  an  "acrostic"  is  to  begin  at  any  point 
whatever  and  to  end  at  any  point  whatever,  one  may  read  anything 
he  wishes  if  he  read  far  enough.  The  first  test  of  an  acrostic  is 
that  it  begin  and  end  at  such  distinctive  points  as  the  first  or  last 
letter  of  a  title,  or  a  terminal  of  a  corner  word,  or  a  printer's  signa- 
ture, or  a  remarkably  significant  word  ;  or  two  or  more  acrostics 
thus  beginning  may  end  at  a  common  point,  or  an  acrostic  may  in 
some  manner  be  "  coextensive  "  with  the  text,  i.e.  beginning  at  a 
given  point  it  shall  follow  around  to  that  point  again. 

The  "  String  "  feature  is  an  ancient  device  *  ;  the  sequence  of 
the  "  next  needed  letter  "  combmed  with  the  string  is  Mr.  Booth's 
discovery  or  invention,  —  and  whether  a  discovery  or  an  invention 
Mr.  Booth's  ingenuity  and  the  subtlety  of  the  device  are  not  to  be 
denied.  Even  if  there  is  not  sufficient  evidence  to  prove  its  actual 
use,  it  undoubtedly  could  have  been  used  for  the  very  purposes 
alleged  by  Mr.  Booth,  f 


•  Claudian,  writing  at  the  beginning  of  the  fifth  century  A.D.,  tells  m  his  "  de  Bello  Gothico  " 
that  Alaric  was  urged  on  to  attack  Rome  by  a  voice  which  delivered  to  him  these  lines ;  — 

**  Kumfie  omneij  AlaricCy  moras^  hoc  impigtr  annO 
Alpibui  Ilaliae  rufth  finelrahlt  ad  urbeM.'' 

A  true  acrostic  {AKROS  =  "H  the  end":  STICH0S=»3  line"),  recognized  as  such  by 
scholars,  and  indicated  in  at  least  two  editions,  is  here  presented,  which,  read  forward  on  the  first  line  and 
backward  on  the  second  line,  on  the  "  terminals  "  of  the  lines,  gives  "  ROMA." 

t  One  of  Mr.  Booth's  most  intelligent  critics  names  certain  conditions,  which  if  found  would  con- 
vince him  of  an  intentional  method. 


la  WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 

Mr.  Booth  has  shown  the  presence  in  "  acrostics  "  of  certain 
names  and  phrases  which  if  intentional,  are  undoubtedly  significant, 
in  the  passages  in  which  they  occur,  though  their  significance  is  not 
necessarily  "  exclusive." 

Mr.  Booth's  argument  for  intention  is  based  upon  the  dis- 
covery of  each  of  these  names  or  phrases  in  a  series  which  it  is 
claimed  cannot  be  duplicated  in  passages  taken  at  random  from 
literature  in  general,  although  the  phrase  or  na/ne  is  undoubtedly 
to  be  found  here  and  there  in  random  and  unrelated  passages. 

These  series  of  acrostics  have  been  compared  to  series  of 
extraordinary  deals  at  cards  to  the  dealer's  own  advantage,  while 
a  number  of  similar  deals  occurring  at  various  tables  and  at  diverse 
times,  would  (like  the  occasional  acrostics)  have  no  significance. 

Granting,  however,  that  such  acrostics  as  Mr.  Booth  has  traced 
occur  with  greater  frequency  in  a  given  group  than  in  the  same  num- 
ber of  passages  taken  at  random,  and  granting  also  that  perfect 
acrostics  do  occur  at  random,  how  is  the  status  of  a  given  indi- 
vidual passage  to  be  determined,  if  his  series  are  all  that  can  be 
discovered  ? 

Moreover,  it  seems  to  the  writer,  neither  Mr.  Booth  nor  his 
critics  have  directed  enough  attention  to  two  very  important  phases 
of  the  subject ;  first,  —  the  method  itself  apart  from  the  application 
of  the  method  to  the  building  up  of  some  theory  of  authorship  ; 
secondly,  —  the  discovery  of  significant  acrostics  in  significant  places 
even  if  these  may  not  be  repeated  in  series  —  for  example  the 
"  Donna  Leonora  "  acrostics  in  the  Milton  poems. 

The  writer  has  been  impressed  by  Mr.  Booth's  work,  es- 
pecially by  certain  details  and  incidentals,  and  has  found  a  study  of 
the  subject  interesting  and  diverting.  He  has  tried  neither  to 
prove  nor  to  disprove  its  conclusions,  but  has  attempted  to  see  if 
the  method  were  capable  of  further  development. 


QUESTIONS  AND  ANSWERS 

After  two  years'  investigation  it  seems  to  the  writer  that  he 
has  determined  the  following  facts  :  —  some  of  them  for  conven- 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS 


13 


ience  stated  in  the  form  of  answers  to  questions  that  are  frequently 
asked. 

1.  ^«.     Is  it  not  possible  to  find  acrostics  anywhere? 
Ans.     The  occurrence  of  acrostics  that  are  clearly 

accidental  in  random  passages  is  much  more 
frequent  than  one  would  gather  from  Mr 
Booth's  assumptions. 

2.  ^«.     Have  you  looked  for  other  names  ?     With 

what  result  ? 

Ans.  Yes.  Occasional  acrostics  that  lead  to  impos- 
sible conclusions  are  to  be  found  to  some 
extent  in  some  of  the  passages  in  which  Mr. 
Booth  has  found  "  Baconian  "  acrostics. 

3.  ^a.     How  could  one  write  his  fancy  freely  and  keep 

these  acrostics  in  his  mind  at  the  same  time  ? 
(assuming  that  the  acrostics  are  not  acci- 
dental). 

Ans.  The  first  draft  must  have  been  written  freely 
and  the  acrostics  inserted  afterwards,  for  the 
"  tricking  "  of  a  passage  in  order  to  insert 
acrostics  (even  a  considerable  number  of 
them  in  a  few  lines)  is  an  easy  process ;  and 
the  sense,  meter,  and  even  the  wording  need 
not  greatly  change,  especially  if  the  variant 
spelling  of  the  i6th  century  is  allowed. 

4.  ^a.  Do  some  acrostics  "  work  "  and  some  not.? 
Ans.  In  attempting  to  read  acrostics  there  are  cer- 
tain words,  names  and  phrases  which  it 
seems  almost  impossible  to  find  at  all,  while 
others  form  a  numerous  series.  Any  of 
these  would  be  equally  significant  if  found 
with  a  frequency  which  could  be  proved  to 
be  unusual. 

5.  ^.     How    could    Mr.   Booth's  evidence  be  rein- 

forced ? 


14  WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 

Ans.  Within  the  text  of  certain  exceptional  passages 
certain  words,  names  or  phrases,  and  some- 
times several  of  these,  may  be  traced  in 
acrostics  to  a  degree  far  beyond  that  which 
Mr.  Booth's  diagrams  indicate.  Such  a 
proven  exceptional  and  unusual  repetition 
of  significant  acrostics  would  strengthen 
the  evidence  of  intention  in  the  acrostic 
method  discovered  or  devised  by  Mr.  Booth. 

6.  ^«.     If  this  acrostic  method    is    intentional    what 

have  you  to  say  about  other  methods  that 
other  people  present,  the  "bi-literal "  cipher 
for  instance  ? 
Ans.  I  have  not  studied  the  application  of  the  "  bi- 
literal  "  cipher,  but  no  matter  what  tricks 
may  have  been  played  with  a  given  piece  of 
text,  when  that  text  is  in  its  final  literal  form, 
the  "  bi-litcral  "  cipher  may  be  applied,  as 
it  is  absolutely  independent  of  the  sense, 
spelling  and  division  into  lines,  and  depends 
entirely  on  the  use  of  two  different  fonts  of 
type. 

7.  ^.     Are  you  not  proving  too  much  ? 

Ans.  If  I  understand  this  frequent  inquiry,  it  seems 
to  me  to  beg  the  question.  Distrusting  my 
own  negative  testimony  to  a  certain  degree, 
I  ask  comparison  of  the  discoveries  shown 
in  diagram  with  what  it  is  possible  to  find  in 
random  and  unrelated  passages. 


It  is  my  purpose  to  present  to  the  reader,  without  argument 
and  without  attempting  to  defend  or  deny  any  theory  of  authorship 
or  of  intention,  certain  acrostics  which  by  a  little  patience  he  may 
find  in  the  page  that  forms  the  subject  of  this  paper  —  or  may  read 
from  the  diagrams  without  the  trouble  of  verifying  them. 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS  15 

Those  who  wish  to  verify  the  acrostics  may  have  the  text 
always  opposite  the  diagrams  by  unfolding  the  fly  leaf  at  the  end 
of  the  book. 

Acrostics  in  the  diagrams  are  shown  as  follows :  — 

On  Initials  —  by  Roman  Capitals. 
On  Terminals  —  by  Italic  Capitals. 
On  All  letters  —  by  small  letters. 

Unless  otherwise  stated  acrostics  are  to  be  read  on  all  letters. 

A  few  remarks  are  necessary  about  the  rules  for  reading  the 
acrostics  in  the  page  about  to  be  considered,  and  which  I  have 
applied  to  all  the  passages  I  have  examined. 

i  and  j  are  interchangeable. 

u  and  V  are  interchangeable  (in  lower  case  type). 

"  Thendeuour  "  in  the  fifth  line  and  "  shalbe  "  in  the  thirteenth 
I  consider  as  one  word  in  reading  terminals  or  initials. 

No  words  are  omitted  in  reading  through  a  given  portion, 
whether  stage  directions,  names  of  characters  or  words  in  parentheses, 
and  no  exceptions  are  for  any  reason  admitted. 

Notice  that  the  method  used  in  finding  the  acrostics  is  the 
same  in  every  case;  that  they  pass  once,  and  once  only,  through 
the  text  from  the  point  of  beginning  to  where  they  end,  passing 
around  the  outside  when  necessary  to  complete  the  progress. 


i6  WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 


THE  TEXT 

The  text  shown  on  the  opposite  page  is  the  first  page  of  the 
1598  Quarto  of  "A  pleafant  conceited  Comedie  called  Loues 
Labor's  Loft,"  the  only  known  edition  of  that  play  previous  to  the 
1623  Folio,  and  is  a  reproduction  from  "A  Facsimile  in  Photo- 
lithography by  William  Griggs."  The  facsimile  is  "from  the  Duke 
of  Devonshire's  copy,  the  confounded  mounter  of  whose  pages  has 
cut  off  part  of  some  head  lines  and  foot  lines,  and  the  whole  of 
some  signatures."  * 

In  this  case  the  catch  word  "  To"  has  been  trimmed,  but  the 
lower  part  has  been  restored  in  the  present  reproduction  by  the 
dotted  lines.  The  proper  signature  for  this  page  is  A2.  If  it  ap- 
peared in  the  original  it  was  trimmed  away  by  the  mounter.  The 
other  signatures  in  the  quarto  were  usually  on  the  same  line  with 
the  catchword,  but  in  at  least  one  case  the  signature  was  in  the  line 
below  the  catchword.  The  presence  of  the  signature  would  not 
affect  the  acrostics  that  are  to  be  illustrated. 

*  F.  J.  Furnivall.     Foreword  to  Quarto  i,  1598 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS  17 


Encer  Ferdinand  ICof  Nauar,  Berowne, 
LmgatiHt^attdDtaajam. 

Terdmaid, 

LET  Faine,that  all  inint  after  in  their  tyues. 
Line  re^URred  vpon  our  brazen  Tombes, 
And  then  grace  vs,in  the  di&raoe  oTdeath; 
When^l^t  of  cormoTaoc  deuotffingTinu^ 
Tbetideiiour  of  this  preient  breath  xtaej  buy: 
That  honour  whidiUiall  bare  his  fythes  keene  ^^ 
And  make  vs  hdres  of  all  ctemkic. 
Therefore  brauc  Con<(ucroors,forfoyou  are, 
Thacwarre  agaynftyourowneafieftioils. 
And  the  hudse  armie  of  the  worldes  defires* 
Our  late  ediu  (hall  flron?l}r  fland  in  force, 
2\(«a»- ihall  be  the  wonder  of  the  vforWe, 
OiirCourtfltalbealytOe  Achadem^ 
Still  and  contemplatyue  b  lyning  art 
You  three,  Tiefmne,  'Dpmam,  and  LongauHl. 
HaaeiWomefor  three  yeeresteamie,  to  line  wHh  me: 
My  ftllow  S<^Iert,and  to  kcepo  thiofe  Aattttes 
That  are  recorded  in  this  fedaleiicre. 
Your  othes  are  paAjtind  row  fubfcribe  yoar  nsmest 
That  his  ownc  hand  may  flrike  his  honour  downe, 
ThatviolaiesthefManeft branch  herein. 
If  ]^u  are  armd  t  o  do,  as  fworne  to  do, 
SobTcribe  to  your  deepeothes,  and  keepe  H  to. 

LaitgrnU.  IaQtrerolued,tis  botatheeye^resfaft: 
Thenindc  fliaU  bait^tjthoi^  the  body  pine* 
Fatpauneheshaueleanepatet:  and  dayntv  bits 
Make  rid)  the  ribbes,but  banerout  quite  the  wttn 

Htmem.  T^y  louine  Lord,  DHxnaine  is  tnott«fied, 
Tite  Btbfler  manner  onhefe  world^ddyghtsi 
Hettnowdvppoo  die  groire  worlds  baierflfiues 

To 


i8  WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 


A  CONCEALED  TITLE 

In  most  of  the  quarto  editions  the  title  of  the  play  is  repeated 
either  in  full  or  in  an  abbreviated  form  at  the  head  of  the  first 
page  of  the  text.  This  is  not  true  of  this  quarto  of  "Loues  Labor's 
Loft."     Is  the  title  concealed  ? 

Begin  with  the  "  1 "  of  "  lyues,"  the  initial  of  the  first  right 
hand  word  of  the  text.  Read  to  the  left  and  downward  through 
the  text  to  the  "T"  of  the  catchword  "To"  having  selected  the 
initials   in  the  order  needed,  having  spelled 

"  LOVES  LABORS  LOST" 

and  having  just  passed  through  the  passage  from  the  first  initial  in 
the  string  to  the  last. 

It  is  to  be  remembered  that  in  reading  an  initial  acrostic  all 
letters  save  initials  are  nulls. 


AND  HISTHREE  FRIENDS 
Figure  I. 


Enter  FerdinandK-ofNauar,  Berowne, 

JUngatiiflfOndDmv&itTt. 


c 


£T  ram»|thrtaUliiinntfeaii  l^^^ «* 

■{Ml 

-Vie 


CT  Liner«g^ftr«lvpo|HW*4>»a*^ -:^ > 


d 


Z3 


->-e..j^ 


c 


D 


->f- 


c 


3 


C 


L<alytUwA<- 


ID 


C 


»^ 


3 


wHhweT 


) 


c 


o<- 


■aft|9ad  Fi 


...  j. 


D 


-»r- 


J 


rrr-*!- 


C 


.  ^mte 


t^fc  wivn — ' 


i.n»in»TMfiod» 


»iyghtrt 


D 


»ww  v|>poa  die  gppflc  wQri<tfi^af<»fift«»» \ 


20 


WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 
Figure  II. 


Enter  Ferdinand  JLof  Nauar,  Berowne, 


n — 0-* 


Dt 


C 


D 


-b-a- 


-no- 


ZD 


-vs-C- 


c 


reb- 


D    I 


-jons- 


-c- 


eft 


-r-ft- 


-fMr 


C! 


•I — ?irb- 


D  I 


C 


'III  u.]  I'ffC*' 


-** 


)  tCTi^  ;c(i>oigy  to  IImc  whii  incf 


itf-S- 


CIsIfcTi- 


nC'-i'-"  ■'  tO» 


theeye€rtjfoft4 
:« samtk  ffitii  i»e«^t,ywu^H  the  boily  |Kne, 
-  a«  paunehc J  haae  J«ne  pst«s:  and  daynty  bits 
Mnke  rieh  the  ribbes.but  banewiut  quite  tfte  wit*. 

TSi*  fflfiftffer  mamker  olth<e&  yrortte<Wyghts: 
Hettoowesvppo©  the  grD(ire.worl<J«  bakrflaaeJ        ^ 


A  6 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS  ai 

In  the  first  line  we  are  struck  with  the  letters  "unt"  of  the 
word  "  hunt "  next  to  the  letter  "a  "  of  "  after.  This  gives  us  the 
beginning  of  "  Antonius  "  and  the  end  of  "  scripseruni."  We  try 
the  sentence  "Antonius  Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus  et  Franciscus  Baconus 
scripserunt "  to  see  if  it  will  run  through  the  "  speech  and  Ferdi- 
nand," an  even  number  of  lines  and  the  most  conspicuous  "unit" 
on  the  page. 

Begin  with  the  "  a  "  of  "  after."  Read  to  the  right  and  down- 
ward, through  Ferdinand's  speech,  and  pass  up  the  outside  of  the 
page,  then  through  the  name  Ferdinand  and  back  through  the 
first  line  again  to  the  "  t "  of  "  hunt,"  as  indicated  by  the  arrows, 
selecting  the  letters  as  they  first  appear  in  their  needed  order,  and 
we  read 

"  Antonius  Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus  et  Franciscus 
Baconus  scripserunt." 

This  illustrates  the  method  used  in  all  the  acrostics  shown. 

We  are  led  by  our  success  to  try  the  other  permutations  in  the 
order  of  the  names  with  and  without  the  Latin  verbs  "scripserunt" 
and  "  invenerunt."     With  what  success  will  now  appear. 

Of  course  in  order  to  accomplish  this  we  must  take  all  the 
chances  offered  by  the  letters  necessary  for  the  beginning  and  end- 
ing of  our  acrostics  appearing  next  to  each  other,  no  matter  in  what 
part  of  the  text  they  appear.  It  is  clear  that  corner  letters  and 
others  in  conspicuous  positions  would  not  suffice  in  number. 


22 


WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 


Figure  II  A. 


Ferdinand,  nut — -  ^                jj 

L 

I       \ 

/          \ 

\ 

a                               ' 

*' 

/ 

' 

o 

"                                          1 

/                       ' 

5                                  / 

\                             ' 

\                         J 

3 

^"^                          ^ 

Subrcribe 

Here  the  same  acrostic  is  indicated  in  a  simpler  form. 

The  arrow  below  the  "  a  "  of  "  after  "  indicates  that  the  acrostic 
is  to  be  read  down  to  the  right,  the  dotted  line  indicates  the  pass- 
ing up  on  the  outside  and  into  the  line  "  Ferdinand"  and  the  last 
arrow  indicates  that  the  "  t "  of  "  hunt "  is  reached  while  passing  to 
the  right. 

For  convenience  this  simpler  form  will  be  used  in  indicating 
all  the  acrostics  that  are  illustrated  in  this  paper. 

The  reader  is  to  note  that  the  illustrations  are  diagrams  only ; 
the  form  of  the  curves  does  not  indicate  the  position  of  the  acrostic 
letters  in  the  text.  This  is  in  answer  to  a  question  frequently 
asked  by  those  who  have  read  this  paper  but  have  not  attempted 
to  verify  the  illustrations. 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS 


23 


Figure  III. 


Figure  IV. 


L" 

/ 
/ 

4 

1 

\ 

/ 

\ 

/ 

1 

1 

1 

1 

J 

1 

1 

t 

1 

e 
1 
a 

\ 

m 
n 

\ 

0 

e 
a 

\ 

a 

\ 

s 
u 

\ 

n 

\ 

// 

^v  y 

Svbrcribe  to  your  deepeothei,  and  keepe  U  to. 

From  the  "A"  of  "And  "  in  the 
seventh  line  of  the  speech  read 
to  the  right  and  up 
down  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  up 
to  the  "t"  of  "therefore"  in  the 
eighth  line  of  the  speech 

"Antonius  Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus 
et  Franciscus  Baconus  invenerunt.  " 


From   "s"   of  "othes"  in  the 
last  line  of  the  speech  read 
to  the  left 
up  on  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  down 
to  the  "a"  of  "and"  in  the  last 
line  spelling  backward 

"Antonius  Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus 
et  Franciscus  Baconus." 


24 


WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 


Figure  V. 


Figure  VI. 


FerdinajiJ. 

-.— -^'^^^               V 

L" 

/ 

\ 

/ 

i 

/ 

0 

* 

/ 

J 

/ 

S 
/ 

/ 

e 

/ 
/ 

A 

r 

1 

y 

Wburoihesaiepaft, 

\       "^ 

^<t  a 

\ 

3 

Subfcribt*'f«*''^ 

Psrdmtatd.^pos'vi^            3n 

V 

/ 

/ 

,,-"*" 

/ 

i 

/ 

/ 

of  tjte  worides  (iefircs- 

1 

\ 

\ 

\ 
S 

u 

\ 

\ 

n 

0 

i 

\ 

J 
/ 

\ 

SaUoibe 

From  the  "a"  of  "are"  in  the 
nineteenth  line  of  the  speech  read 
to  the  right  and  up 
down  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  up 
to  the  "  s  "  of  "  othes  "  in  the  nine- 
teenth line 

"Antonius  Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus 
et  Franciscus  Baconus." 


From  the  "t"  of  "the"  before 
"  worldes "  in  the  tenth  line  read 
to  the  right  and  down 
up  on  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  down 
to  the  "  f "  of  "  of"  in  the  tenth 
line  spelling  backward 

"Franciscus  Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus 
et  Antonius    Baconus  scripserunt," 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS 


25 


Figure  VII. 

Figure  VIII. 

ferdinand.  ,0^  "  '««i,.         3Zn 

FerJinonJ.^  au» US 

v 

T   ET                 ,'  '                   \ 
1                        '                              \ 

\              ^ 

\ 

^  M^^               \ 

V 

of  Swworldes  defiles* 

ofth«vr«rl(fe«(le{ir<s. 

/•'        / 

r             / 

/                                            / 

/ 

?                                          / 

/ 

/ 

4       ■/ 

y 

Sub(brlb« 

'^  ^._.  -^ 

SA&ribe       *'*J  ^c»-^ 

From  the  same  "  t "  of  "  the  " 
read 

to  the  right  and  up 
down  on  the  outside 
to  the  left  and  up 
to  the  "  f "  of"  of"  spelling  back- 
ward 


From  the  same  "  t "  to  the  same 
"  f "  in  Figure  VI  spell  backward 

"  Franciscus    Baconus   et   Antonius 
Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus  invenerunt." 


"Franciscus  Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus 
et  Antonius  Baconus  invenerunt." 


26 


WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 


Figure  IX. 


Figure  X. 


PerJinaml.  j 

'"'""'  ''^^o,      1L 

T  ET            y^ 

L       / 

/ 

\ 

/ 

9 

/ 

f 

/ 

1 

c 

s 

>«■ 
r 
m 

s 

\ 

/ 

\ 

-/ 

\     fmallcjt  branch 

Subf<rib«           ^  ^ 

Jierd'mand.     eneonc 
T   ET                      ^ 

\ 

/ 

^ 
« 

/ 

s 

c 

/ 

a 
e 
* 

1 

1 

♦ 
S 

e 
A 

1 

\ 

^      J 

\ 

\ 

rnulleftlifanch 

SlrUciibi 

\^? 

From  the  "  t "  of  "  fmalleft  "  in 
the  twenty-first  line  of  the  speech 
read 

to  the  left  and  down 
up  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  down 
to  the  "  b  "  of  "  branch  "  in  the 
twenty-first  line,  spelling  backward 

"Ben  lonsonus  et  Franciscus  Baconus 
et  Antonius  Baconus  invenerunt." 


Read  in  the  same  manner  be- 
tween the  same  two  letters,  spelling 
backward 

"  Ben  lonsonus  et  Antonius  Baconus 
et  Franciscus  Baconus  invenerunt." 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS 


27 


Figure  XI. 


Figure  XII. 


L" 


ferdinand.. 


-e^- 


/ 


i 


31 


/ 

/     IjMueConquerouft^forfoyouare, 


\ 


I 


s 

I 


i 


\ 


IMcHat-^unoS"'' 


.M' 


IPerdaiandy^*"' 

"*%,  ™ 

V 

/ 

\ 

/ 

%. 

's 

/ 

1 

/ 

/ 

/ 

/ 

/ 

/ 

/ 

^ 

Sub/cribe  to  your  deepe  othes 

From  the  "f"  of  "for"  in  the 
eighth  line  of  the  speech  read 
to  the  right  and  down 
up  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  down 
to  the  "  s  "  of  "  Conquerors  "  in 
the  eighth  line  of  the  speech 

"  Franciscus  Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus 
et  Antonius  Baconus^ 


From  the  "  b  "  of  "  Subfcribe  " 
in  the  last  line  of  the  speech  read 
to  the  left 
up  on  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  down 
to  the  "  f "  of  the  same  word  "  Sub- 
fcribe " 

"5f»  lonsonus  et  Franciscus  Baconus 
et  Antonius  Baconus." 


28  WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 

Figure  XIII.  Figure  XIV. 


From  the  second  "  f "  of  "  fub- 

fcribe  "  in  the  nineteenth  line  of  the 

speech  read 

to  the  right  and  down 

up  the  outside 

to  the  left  and  down 

to  the   first  "b"  of  "  fubfcribe," 

spelling  backward 

"  Ben  lonsonus  et  Antonius  Baconus 
et  Franciscus  Baconus." 

From  the  same  "  f "  read  in  the 
opposite  direction  to  the  same  "  b  " 
spelling  backward 

"  Ben  lonsonus  et  Franciscus  Baconus 
et  Antonius  Baconus." 


V 

Ferdinand.^  /jnton  ,^.              XIV 

/                  ^ 

fubfcrikeyour  Tianws:/ 

Subfcribe 

i  y 

From  the  same  "  f "  of  "  fub- 
fcribe  to  the  same  "  b  "  of  "  fub- 
fcribe "  spell  backward  in  the 
direction  indicated 

"5^«  lonsonus  et  Franciscus  Baconus 
et  Antonius  Baconus." 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS 


29 


Figure  XV. 


Figure  XVI. 


Ferdinand. 

^  ro^s ' 

-^      zs 

T  ET                  fi' 

\ 

m 
S 

1 

/ 

/ 

And 

/ 

Our 

/ 

o 

/ 

s 

t 

c 
n 

/ 

> 

/ 

Subfcribe''*o-      v^ 

r 

Ftrdiitand.          ^  rrco^    2SZL 

/                i 

/                   / 
/                  / 

/                                    ^ 
1 

Snbieribe 

From  the  "  O  "  of  "  Our  "  in 
the  eleventh  line  of  the  speech  read 
to  the  right  and  down 
up  the  outside 
to  the  left  and  down 
to  the  "  A  "  of"  And  "  in  the  tenth 
line  of  the  speech  spelling  backward 

"Antonio  Bacono  et  Ben  lonsono  et 
Francisco  Bacono." 


From  the  "  o  "  of  "  do  "  in  the 
last  line  but  one  read 

to  the  left  and  up 
down  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  up 
to  the  "  a  "  of"  as  "  in  the  same  line 
of  the  speech  spelling  backward 

"Antonio  Bacono  et  Ben  lonsono  et 
Francisco  Bacono." 


These  are  the  only  places  on  the  page  where  "a"  and  "o" 
are  adjacent  letters. 


30 


WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 


Figure  XVI  I. 


Figure  XVIII. 


Ferdinand.^ 
T  ET                    A 

L 

~^^       XVII 
\ 

\ 

0 

1 

c 

' 

A 

1 
3 

( 

.\ 

/ 

O 

c 

/ 

s 

/ 

c 

/ 

Subfcribc        ^^^     -   ^ 

L 


Ferdinand. 


ET 


Subfcribc 


X 


'n 


\ 


-v. 


XVIll 


/» 

t 

S 


liuf  vwthme:/ 


/ 


From  the  "  f "  of  "of"  in  the 
fourth  line  read  on  terminals 

to  the  right  and  up 

down  the  outside 

to  the  left  and  up 
to  the  "  o  "  of  the  same  "  of"  in  the 
fourth  line 

"  FRANCISCO  BACONOr 


From  the  "  e  "  of  "  Hue  "  in  the 
sixteenth    line    read    on   terminals 
to  the  left  and  down 
up  the  outside 
to  the  left  and  down 
to  the  "  w  "  of  "  with  "  in  the  six- 
teenth Hne  spelling  backward 

''iVILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE." 

Remember   this   when   we   read 
plates  LIV  and  LV 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS 


31 


Figure  XIX. 


Figure  XX. 


L" 


SubJcribe 


Feidinani. 


/ 


X 


/ 


I 
s 


XK 


/ 


\ 

wonder  of  the  worlde, 


^z 


\ 


\ 


V 


\ 


-X-A- 


J/ 


V 


J^rdihend. 


u 


/ 


/r 
B 


\ 


f/ 


5 

/ 

C 

/r 

A 


Hauefwome 

/r 
O 

Subfcrik  N*^ 


N 


sx: 


\ 


\ 


/ 


/ 


/ 


y 


/ 


From  the  "  e "  of  the  second 
"  the  "  in  the  twelfth  line  read  on 
terminals 

to  the  left  and  up 
down  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  up 
to  the  "  w  "  of  "  worldes  "  in  the 
twelfth  line  spelling  backward 

''WILLIAM  SHAKESPEAREr 


From  the  "  e  "  of  "  fworne  "  in 
the  sixteenth  line  read  on  terminals 
to  the  left  and  down 
up  the  outside  ■ 
to  the  left  and  down 
to  the  "f"  of  "for"  in  the  six- 
teenth line  spelling  backward 

"FRANCIS  BEN  AND 
ANTHONIE." 


See  plate  LIX 


32  WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 

Figure  XXI. 


rerdinand. , —  F  < 


JSZI 


\ 


/ 


/ 


Swbfcribe  N^v 


From  the  "  m  "  of  "  make  "  in 
the   seventh   line   read  on   initials 
to  the  right  and  down 
up  the  outside 
to  the  left  and  down 
to    the    "A"   of  "And"   in   the 
seventh  line 

"MEDIOCRIA  FIRMA" 


^^'Bacon  ecjues  auratus  O*  magnl 
fimli  zAngUae  Cuftos  librum  hum  hi' 
oltothecae  CdntahrigJmuit, 
1574" 


It  may  be  well  to  call   attention   again   to  the   fact  that  in 
"  initial  acrostics  "  all  the  letters  but  initials  are  nulls. 

The  "A"  of  "And"  and  the  "m"  of  "  make "  are  contig- 
uous initials,  and  hence  the  "  Key  "  of  this  acrostic  is  complete. 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS  :i3 

Figure  XXII.  Figure  XXIII. 


Ferdinand. 

/ 

/ 

1 

affections 

/And 

\    1 

Take  the  text  of  the  first  speech 
alone. 

From  the  "  s  "  of  "  affections  " 
in  the  ninth  line  read 

to  the  left  and  up 
down  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  up 
to  the  "A"  of  "And  "  in  the  tenth 
line,  spelling  backward 

"Antonius  Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus 
et  Francis cus  Baconus." 

To  read  through  a  passage  con- 
taining an  odd  number  of  lines  one 
must  begin  at  one  end  of  a  line  and 
end  at  the  other  end  of  the  next  line. 


T    ET                      huntalter                     -^^^ 

L        /\ 

/     \ 

/        \ 

/          \ 

/             \ 

'              \ 

1                'i 

1                 • 

'                 '• 

« 

" 

.                                                             u 

1                        f 

\                 f 

\                      f 

\ 

\         / 

^v                      / 

\                                     ./ 

He             ^^res^i-r^ 

We  have  thus  far  been  concerned 
with  the  first  speech  and  the  name 
of  its  speaker.  Let  us  now  ex- 
amine the  text  of  the  whole  page. 
From  the  "  a  "  of  "  after  "  in  the 
first  line  of  the  text  read 

to  the  right  and  down 
up  the  outside 
to  the  left 
to  the  "  t "  of  "  hunt  " 

"Antonius    Baconus    et    Franciscus 
Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus  scripserunt." 


34  WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 

Figure  XXIV.  Figure  XXV. 


?*- 

And 

\ 

Therefore 

\ 

% 

\ 

1 

:■ 

1 

m 

e 

/ 

s 

/ 

/ 

/ 

a 
S 

/ 

S 

/ 

% 

/ 

V 

/ 

'♦ 

y 

He       '«*9c  -- 

T  ET 

Pint 

\ 
\ 

t 

\ 

1 

1 

/ 

/ 

/ 

** 

a 
*• 

/ 

J" 

/ 

% 

/ 

i 
5 

/ 

He     *'^ 

te  auno 

/ 

From  the  "  A  "  of  "  And  "  in 
the  seventh  line  of  the  text  read 

to  the  right  and  up ' 

down  the  outside 

to  the  left  and  up 
to  the  "T"  of  "Therefore"  in 
the  eighth  line 

"Antonius    Baconus    et    Francis cus 
Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus  invenerunt." 


From  the  same  "  A  "  to  the  same 
"  T "   read   in   the    same    manner 

"Antonius  Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus 
et  Franciscus  Baconus  invenerunt." 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS  35 

Figure  XXVI.  Figure  XXVII. 


V/ 

I»c4i*c,„^                 X^^ 

/ 

\ 

0 

\ 

y 

\ 

That 

1 

1 

a 

1 
1 

S 

e 
t 

/ 

J' 

a 
h 

c 

/ 

t' 

a 
e 

/ 

s 

/ 

He           ''« 

^ft. 

,^ 

L' 

/ 

^^  />^       TOW 

/ 

5 

/ 
/ 

/ 

/ 

/ 

1 

/ 

s 

Uatule* 

\ 

J 
^ 

1 

1 

\ 

y 

\ 

/ 

He 

"^Suno. 

From  the  "  T  "  of  "  That "  in 
the  ninth  line  read 

to  the  right  and  up 

down  the  outside 

to  the  left  and  up 
to   the   "A"   of  "And"   in   the 
tenth  line,  spelling  backward 

"Antonius    Baconus    et   Franciscus 
Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus  invenerunt." 


From  the  first "  t "  of  "  ftatutes  " 
in  the  seventeenth  line  read 
to  the  left  and  up 
down  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  up 
to  the  "  a  "  of  "  ftatutes,"  spelling 
backward 

"Antonius  Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus 
et  Franciscus  Baconus  scripserunt." 


36 


WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 


Figure  XXVIII. 


Figure  XXIX. 


V 

1 

huntaftgr 

s 

a 

\ 

\ 

i 

\ 

t 

\ 

a 

% 
1 

\ 

o 

» 

s 
o 

u 

s 

, 

A 

/ 

% 

/ 

\ 

/ 

He 

"'-'/>.., 

..^ 

From  the  "  f "  of  "  after  "  in  the 
first  line  read 

to  the  left  and  down 

up  the  outside 

to  the  left 
to  the  "  t  "  of  "  after  " 

"  Franciscus    Baconus    et   Antonius 
Baconus  et  Ben  Ions  onus  scripserunt." 


From  the  same  "  f "  to  the  same 
"t"  read  in  the  same  manner 

"  Franciscus  Baconus  et  Ben  Ions  onus 
et   Antonius    Baconus    scripserunt." 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS 


37 


Figure  XXX. 


Figure  XXXI. 


V 

/                      1 

/ 

* 

1 

e 
y 
u 
1 

1 

of  the  worMes  defiTe«> 

1 

n 
9 

I 

tt 

\ 

1 

t 

m 

\ 

m,                                      S 

t 

3 

\ 

m 
c 
« 

\ 

\ 

/ 

\ 

He 

^  "I^neB^ 

\T 

f 

I 
< 

\ 

ft 

\ 

t. 

\ 

** 

\ 

\ 

1 

'4 

t 

e 

/ 

1 

/ 

f 

^ 

/ 

r 
c 
S 

/ 

% 

/ 

\ 

/ 

He 

\^^ 

/ 

From  the  "  t "   of  the  second 
"  the  "  in  the  tenth  line  read 
to  the  right  and  up 
down  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  up 
to  the  "  f "  of  "  of"  in  the  tenth 
line,  spelHng  backward 

"  Franciscus    Baconus    et   Antonius 
Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus  scripserunt." 


From  the  "  t "  of  "  fmalleft"  in 
the  twenty-first  line  read 

to  the  left  and  down 

up  the  outside 

to  the  left  and  down 

to  the  "  b  "  of  "  branch  "  in  the 

twenty-first  line,  spelling  backward 

"  Ben  lonsonus  et  Antonius  Baconus 
et  Franciscus  Baconus  scripserunt." 


38 


WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 


Figure  XXXII. 


Figure  XXXIII. 


L" 

N 

t 

n 
A 

\ 

'• 

\ 

\ 

*d 

\ 

\ 

\ 

\ 

"r 

i 

1 

1 

/ 

I 

fmlleA^fwich 

/ 

e 

IT 

e 

f 

/ 

/ 

\ 

/ 

St, 

/ 

He 

•'"-*-- 

L" 

f 

^       XXXlil 

\ 

■i 

\ 

U 

\ 

/f 

0 

\ 

s 

1 

u 

1 

0 

\ 

/ 

/r 

/ 

£ 

finaI1e0  branch 

/ 

/ 

/ 

> 

/ 

> 

/ 

if          / 

He 

\ — -/ 

From  the  same  "t"  to  the  same 
"  b "  read  in  the  same  manner, 
backward 

"  Ben  lonsonus  et  Franciscus  Baconus 
et   Antonius   Baconus    scripserunt." 


From  the  same  "  t "  to  the  same 
"  b  "  read  in  the  same  manner,  but 
on  the  terminals,  backward 

"  BEN  lONSONUS  SCRIPSIl." 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS  39 

Figure  XXXIV.  Figure  XXXV. 


For  the  sake  of  a  little  fun  take 

the  text  and  the  name  of  Ferdinand, 

an  odd  number  of  lines. 

Read  from  the  "  s  "  of  "  wits  " 

in  the  twenty-seventh  line 
down  to  the  left 
up  the  outside 
to  the  left  and  down 

to  the  "F"    of  "Fat,"   spelling 

backward 

"  Franciscus  Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus 
et  Baconus." 


Ly""\ 

XXXV 

;J       \ 

c 

\ 

s 

\ 

I 

3 

£ 

\ 

I 

"1    ■ 

^ 

1 

0 

\ 

1 

/ 

A 

1 

7 

1 

H 

He         ''^V^^ 

/ 

From  the  "  F  "  of  "  Fame  "  in 
the  first  line  read  on  terminals 
through  the  text 

to  the  left  and  down 

up  the  outside 

to  the  left 
to  the  "  e  "  of  "  Fame  " 

"  FRANCIS  BEN  AND 
ANTHONIE." 

The  two  terminals  of  any  word 
are  contiguous  terminals ;  hence 
this  acrostic  keys. 


40 


WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 


Figure  XXXVI. 


Figure  XXXVII. 


From  the  final  "  s  "  of  "  Schol- 
lers  "  in  the  seventeenth  Hne  read 
on  terminals 

to  the  left  and  up 
down  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  up 
to  the  "  a  "  of  "  and  "  in  the  seven- 
teenth line,  spelling  backward 

''ANTHONIE  BEN  AND 
FRANCIS." 


From  the  "  f "  of  "  force  "  in  the 
eleventh    line    read    on    terminals 
to  the  right  and  down 
up  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  down 

"  FRANCIS  ANTHONIE  AND 
BEN." 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS  41 

Figure  XXXVIII.  Figure  XXXIX. 


From  the  "  e  "  of  "  braue  "  in 

the  eighth  line  read  on  terminals 

through  the  text 

to  the  right  and  up 
down  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  up 

to  the  "  b  "  of  "  braue,"  spelling 

backward 

"BEN  FRANCIS  AND 
ANTHONIE." 


Enter  ,^1^-^-     ^™^ 


L 


/ 


\ 


B 


./ 


,/ 


Tigiur 


.  Achadent 


/ 


/ 

H 


I 


\ 

I 


I 


/ 


He 


To 


Taking  the  whole  page  except 
the  catch  word  "  To  "  read  on  in- 
itials from  the  "A"  of  "Achademe  " 
in  the  thirteenth  line 

to  the  left  and  down 
up  the  outside 
to  the  left  and  down 
to  the"N"  of"Nauar" 

"ANTHONIE    BACON. 


42  WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 

Figure  XL. 


From  the  "  b  "  of  "  bate  "  in  the 
sixth  line  of  the  text  read  on  initials 

to  the  right  and  up 

down  the  outside 

to  the  left  and  up 
to  the  "  {"  of  "  Ihall "  in  the  sixth 
line 


"  Double  entente  " 
We  have  thus  far  read  our  acros- 
tics so  that  they  key  completely 
through  the  speech  or  the  text  or 
the  page.  The  reader  with  the  use 
of  a  little  imagination  may  have 
traced  something  of  what  may  be 
called  "  double  entente,"  or  of  a 
suggested  meaning  in  the  words  on 
which  the  acrostics  begin  and  end, 
especially  in  Figures  II,  IV,  V, 
XIII,  XIV,  XVIII  and  XIX. 

In  the  diagrams  now  to  be  shown 
the  acrostics  read  in  such  a  way  as 
to  leave  out  or  expose  or  unmask 
certain  words  which  will  be  seen  to 
be  suggestive  of  a  hidden  meaning. 
This  is  accomplished  by  reading 
the  acrostic  between  the  terminals 
of  the  words  that  it  is  desired  to 
"  expose  "  or  between  the  terminals 
next  to  such  words. 


"BEN   lONSONUS." 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS 


43 


Figure  XLI. 


Figure  XLII. 


L 


Ferdinand.        Xll  (^"n, 

ET  lyues     V 

Liue  regiRred  vpon  our  bnzen  Tombes       \ 


'"t^ 


\. 


/ 


• 

X 


S 
e 
u 

I 

i 

e 
o 
ft 
u 


4. 

$«tb(cribe 


,/ 


/ 


y 


/ 


/ 


/ 


Ferdinand,^ 

^«-:r«.^^       JtUL 

T  ET            ;p<»""' 

L  /' 

o 
n 
u 

^  \ 

Shciresofanetenritie,                    «     | 

c/^"''^ 

(— forToyouaTe, 

/ 

/ 

S 
a 
c 
0 

/ 

I 

/ 

f 
«» 

/ 

\ 

/ 

v.. 

y 

Subfcribe      ""'on^^  ■ 

/ 

Take  the  "speech  and  Ferdinand." 

From    the  "A"  of  "And"  in 
the  third  line  of  the  speech  read 
to  the  right  and  down 
up  the  outside 
to  the  left  and  down 
to  the  "  s  "  of  "  lyues  "  in  the  first 
line,  thus  leaving  the  entire  second 
line  out  of  the  acrostic  and  reading 

"Antonius    Baconus    et    Franciscus 

Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus" 
"  Liue  regiftred  vpon  our  brazen 
Tombes." 


From  the  "  f "  of  "  for  "  in  the 

eighth  line  read 

to  the  left  and  down 

up  the  outside 

to  the  left  and  down 

to  the  "  s  "  of  "  vs  "  in  the  seventh 

line,  so  that  we  read 

"  heires  of  all  eternitie  "   "  for  fo 
you  are  " 

"  Franciscus  Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus 
et  Antonius  Baconus." 


44  WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 

Figure  XLIII.  Figure  XLIV. 


V 

Ferdinami.  /<- 

A 

stHo 

\ 

V 

\ 

\ 

J^ 

yibt9ueConquen>iirs  - 

^ 

/ 

, 

n 

s 

/ 

* 
9 

/ 

/ 
/ 

1 

\ 

/ 

SBbtcribe 

'--*^,^c^^ 

From  the  "  s  "  of  "Conquerors  " 
in  the  eighth  line  read 

to  the  right  and  up 

down  the  outside 

to  the  left  and  up 
to  the  "  b  "  of  "  braue,"  spelling 
backward  so  that  we  read 

"  Ben  lonsonus  et  Franciscus  Baconus 
et  Antonius  Baconus'' 
"  braue  Conquerors." 


Fake  the  text  again. 
From  the  final  "  e  "  of  "  There- 
fore "  in  the  eighth  line  read  on 
terminals 

to  the  left  and  down 
up  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  down 
to  the  "  f "  of  "  for  "  in  the  eighth 
line,  so  that  we  read  backward 

"FRANCIS  BEN  AND 

A  Nr HON  IE" 

"  braue  Conquerours." 


AND  HISTHREE  FRIENDS 


45 


Figure  XLV. 


From  the  "  e  "  of  "  are  "  in  the 
eighth  line  read  on  terminals 
to  the  right  and  up 
down  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  up 
to   the   "  b  "   of  "  braue  "   in   the 
eighth   line,  spelling  backward   so 
that  we  read 

"BEN  FRANCIS  AND 
ANTHONIE  " 
"  braue   Conquerours,  for  fo  you 
arc." 


L" 


Figure  XLVI. 
Ferdinand,     ^^-•*— 


xTvr 


/ 


/ 


/ 


/ 


t 
e 
/ 


s 

u 


I 


OurCourtihalbea-^"' 


tor"'* 


s^ 


B" 


"'^o. 


'^^. 


"A 


^^^f. 


\ 


s 

\  / 

Subfcribe^  cus—r^ 


\ 


Take  the  "  Speech  and  P'erdi- 
nand  "  again. 

From   the   article    "  a "    in    the 

thirteenth  line  read 

to  the  right  and  up 
down  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  up 

to  the  "  S  "  of  "  Still  "  so  that  we 

read 

"  Our  Court  shalbe  " 

"Antonius    Baconus    et    Franciscus 

Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus." 


46 


WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 


Figure  XLVII. 


Figure  XLVIII. 


L 


Ferdinand. 
ET  ^'*rancig^ 


^»i 


^> 


B 

n 


o 


J" 


.tfi 


f 


« 

e 


XEHL 


1 

u 

I 

SukfcTJbe  to  yourdwpe  oAer^and  keep  eilto. 


Ferdinand. 


r 


./^ 


c 

5-. 


V 


o 


Subfcribe  to  your  decpe  oihes,  a- 


From  the  "  F  "  of  "  Fame  "  in 
the  first  line  read 

to  the  right  and  down 
to  the  "  S  "  of  "  Subfcribe  "  in  the 
last  line,  so  that  we  read 

"  Let "  "  Franciscus  Baconus  et  Ben 

lonsonus  et  Antonius  Baconus  " 
''  Subfcribe   to   your  deepe   othes, 
and  keepe  it  to." 


From  the  "  s  "  of"  lyues  "  in  the 
first  line  read 

to  the  left  and  down 
to  the  "  a  "  of  "  and  "  in  the  last 
line,  spelling  backward  so  that  we 
read 

"  Subfcribe  to  your  deepe  othes  " 

"Antonius  Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus 

et  Franciscus  Baconus." 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS 


47 


Figure  XLIX. 


Figure  L. 


ir 

Ferdinavi.  y*^"""^- 
/ 

/ 

i 

/ 

s 

/ 

^ 

/ 

w 
c 

1 
1 

c 
« 
s 

I 

S 

a 
e 
o 

\ 

J 

^andnowrublcribeyDumamesI    1 

\ 

H 

\ 

Subktihc 

Ftrdhami. 

M^-^^       L 

L"     / 

c 

\ 

\ 

F 

\ 

f 

1 

£ 

/ 
A/ 

0 

/f 

/ 

T 

/v 

\nd  now  fubftrlbe  your  n^    / 

i    / 

Subfcilbe 

^^ 

From  the  "  a  "  of  "  and  "  in  the 

nineteenth  line  read 

to  the  left  and  down 

up  the  outside 

to  the  right  and  down 

to  the  "s"  of  "names,"  so   that 

we  read 

"  and  now  fubfcribe  your  names  " 

'■^  Antonius  Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus 

et  Franciscus  Baconus." 


From  the  "  a  "  of  "  and  "  in  the 
nineteenth  line  read  on  terminals 
through  the  "  speech  and  Ferdi- 
nand " 

to  the  left  and  up 

down  the  outside 

to  the  left  and  up 
to  the  "  n  "  of  "  names  "  so  that 
wc  read 

"  and  now  fubfcribe  your  " 

"JNTHONIE  FRANCIS  AND 

BEN" 


48 


WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 


Figure  LI. 


Figure  LII. 


Ferdinand^^^ 

'^  us 

^'cc     ^ 

\T    / 

./ 

% 

/ 

/ 

/ 

'.* 

/ 

.(>fenpwSdiolleti -*""''' 

y' 

■ 

\     "''', 

\           * 

Subfcrtl^-^ 

Ferdinand. 

^rf'<^»\     Br 

V      / 

\ 

^ 

Jl 

; 

/ 

/ 

/ 

/ 

J 

y^-" 

/ 

Stilt 

/ 

You  three,  ■Z?-»«.^ 

.-»'' 

J 

tf 

/ 

'^^ 

/ 

SlMrib. ''«/7_» 

From  the    "  s  "  of  "  Schollers  " 
in  the  seventeenth  line  read 
to  the  right  and  up 
down  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  up 
to   the   "f"    of  "fellow"   in   the 
seventeenth  line,  spelling  backward 
so  that  we  read 

"  Franciscus  Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus 

et  Antonius  Baconus  " 

"Fellow  Schollers." 


From  the  "  B  "  of  "  Berowne  " 
in  the  fifteenth  line  read 

to  the  right  and  down 
up  the  outside 
to  the  left  and  down 
to    the    "S"    of    "Still"    in    the 
twelfth  line,  so  that  we  read 

"  You  three  " 

"  Ben  lonsonus  et  Franciscus  Baconus 

et  Antonius  Baconus." 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS  49 

Figure  LIII.  Figure  LIV. 


PerdinaffJ. 

g'Suc„_^^    J3n 

L 

1 

A 

i 

1 

c 

i 

/ 

/ 

/ 

s-^' 

/ 
/ 

s""' 

/ 

r 

/ 

Subfcribe    ^*>to^^^ 

Reverse  the  reading  so  as  to  read 
the  names  backward  and  we  have 

"You  three  " 

"  Ben  lonsonus  et  Antonius  Baconus 

et  Franciscus  Baconus." 


Ttriimini, 

^pcc^^     USL 

T   ET                  ^ 

s. 

/ 

i 

/ 

a 

/ 

// 

1 

1 

S^ 

p 

^^' 

You  three,  ^^-^ 

IHaue  fwonie/br  three  yeew 

•jtMTme.toriBewithme: 

4"-' 

\ 

a. 
B 

\ 

I 

Snbferibe       ^-z^s-ei- 

/)«'""' 

From  the  final "  s  "  of"  ftatutes  " 
in  the  seventeenth  line  read 
to  the  left  and  down 
up  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  down 
to  the  "  B  "  of  "  Berowne,"  spell- 
ing the  names  backward  so  that  we 
read 

"You  three" 
"  Ben  lonsonus  et  Franciscus  Baconus 

et  Antonius  Baconus  " 
"  Haue    fworne    for    three    yeeres 
tearme,  to  Hue  with  me." 

"  To  live  with  whom  ?  "     We  may 
ask.     Look  back  at  figure  XVIII. 


50 


WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 


Figure  LV. 


Figure  LVI. 


Ferdinand.  ^ 

^nr 

^         / 

s 

A 

/ 

s 

/ 

/ 

/ 

A 
1 

1 

J. 

1 

I 

■  1 

^>»-vfahrK: 

\ 

•> 

\ 

\ 

,/ 

V 

Subfcrib*                       

\r 


Ferdinand. 


121 


,t^" 


i'^ 


y^ 


^ 


\ 


\ 


/^' 


,  .^s.forlbyouare, 


/ 


r 
« 


M 
M 

O 

s 
» 


•s 


/ 


/ 


/ 


/ 


Subfcrlbt    '''*»oc* 


From  the  "  e  "  of  "  me  "  in  the 
sixteenth   line   read   on   terminals 
to  the  right  and  down 
up  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  down 
to  the  "w"   of  "with,"  spelHng 
backward  and  reading 

"  with  me  " 
"WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE." 


Take   the   text   of  Ferdinands' 
speech  alone. 

From  the  "A"  of  "And  "  in  the 
seventh  line  read 

to  the  right  and  up 

down  the  outside 

to  the  left  and  up 
to  the  "  s  "  of  "  Conquerours  "  in 
the  eighth  line,  so  that  we  read 

"Antonius  Baconus  et  Ben  lonsonus 

et  Franciscus  Baconus  " 

"  for  fo  you  are." 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS  51 

Figure  LVII.  Figure  LVIII. 


Next  using  the  entire  text  read 
on    terminals    from    the   "  e "    of 
"  are  "  in  the  eighth  line 
to  the  right  and  up 
down  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  up 
to  the  "  f "  of  "  for  "  in  the  eighth 
line,  spelling  backward,  so  that  we 
read 

"  FRANCIS  BEN  AND 

ANTHONIE  " 
"  for  fo  you  are  " 


Taking  the  whole  text  again  read 
on   terminals  from   the   "  B "    of 
"  Berowne "   in   the   fifteenth   line 
to  the  right  and  down 
up  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  down 
to  the  «  S  "  of  "  Still  " 

"  You  three  " 

"  BEN  ANTHONIE  AND 

FRANCIS." 


5a  WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 

Figure  LIX.  Figure  LX. 


Ferdinand, 

^^-^    US. 

V 

^^ 

1 

z 

/    1 

^wondffoftheworUer            / 

/ 

\ 

/ 
/ 

Subftribe       '^^/r — • -^ 

y 

Return    to    the    "  speech    and 
Ferdinand." 

From  the  "  e  "  of  "  worlde  "  in 
the  twelfth  line  read  on  terminals 

to  the  right  and  up 

down  the  outside 

to  the  left  and  up 
to  the  "  w  "  of  "  wonder  "  in  the 
twelfth  line  backward,  so  that  we 
read 

"  wonder  of  the  worlde  " 
'WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE." 


Enter 

-^      IZ 

/"^ 

\^ 

/    • 

L/ 

s 

/ 

E 

/ 

\ 
A 

1 

1 

f 

1 

J 

now 

fi/bfcrib*/ 

1 

r 

\ 

\ 

"u 

f 

'A 
M 

Using  the  whole  page  read  from 
the  "e"  of  "fubfcribe"  in  the 
nineteenth  line 

to  the  right  and  up 
down  the  outside 
to  the  right  and  up 
to    the"w"   of  "now,"    spelling 
backward,  so  that  we  read 

"  fubfcribe  " 
''WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE." 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS 
Figure  LXI. 


S3 


We  began  by  reading  the  Title  of  the  Play.  Let  us  end  by 
reading  the  author's  name. 

In  reading  the  acrostics  "IVILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE" 
wc  might  in  each  case  have  spelled  the  surname  "SHAKSPEARE." 

From  the  initial  "  f "  of  "  flaues  "  in  the  last  line  of  the  text 
read  to  the  left  and  up  to  the  "  E  "  of  "  Enter,"  the  first  word  on 
the  page,  on  initials 

"SHAKSPEARE" 

Read  the  name  back  again  backward  on  initials  to  the  "  f "  of 
"  flaues. " 


54  WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 

A  FEW  MORE  QUESTIONS 

I  am  not  credulous  enough  to  believe  that  all  the  acrostics 
indicated  in  the  diagrams  are  intentional,  even  if  we  assume  that 
part  of  them  are.*  Does  it  seem  to  the  reader  that  they  are  all 
accidental?  For  one  who  answers  this  question  in  the  affirmative 
the  case  is  ended.  But  of  those  who  see  an  evidence  of  intention 
in  the  group  of  acrostics  taken  together  I  should  like  to  ask  a  few 
more  questions  :  — 

What  relation  is  indicated  on  the  part  of  Anthonie  and  Fran- 
cis Bacon  and  Ben  lonson  to  this  particular  play  by  the  repeated 
occurrences  of  the  three  names  in  all  their  permutations  and  combi- 
nations with  and  without  the  Latin  verbs  "  scripserunt "  and 
invenerunt  ? "  f 

What  did  they  write  ?     What  did  they  devise  ? 

What  is  the  relationship  between  the  three  men  named  and 
"  William  Shakespeare,"  between  the  play  and  "  William  Shakes- 
peare," the  "  wonder  of  the  worlde  "  (Fig.  LIX),  "  with  "  whom 
the  other  three  have  "  fworne  for  three  yeares  tearme  to  Hue," 
(Figs.  LIV  and  LV)  and  who  like  the  others  "fubfcribes"  his 
name  (Fig.  LX)  ? 

Who  or  what  was  this  "  William  Shakespeare  "  ? 

Was  he  the  Stratford  boy  ?  The  actor  and  the  theatre  owner 
of  London  ?  The  poet  of  "  Orthodox  "  tradition  ?  The  "  un- 
lettered rustic  "  of  the  "  High  Baconian  "  ?  The  pseudonym  ? 
The  inspiring  genius  ? 

Is  he  to  be  identified  with  either,  or  all  of  the  three  men 
named  ? 

When  the  answer  is  given  to  the  question  "  Who  was  William 
Shakespeare?"  the  authorship  problem  will  be  solved. 

*  This  statement  may  need  a  word  of  explanation.  I  would  not  attempt  to  distinguish  between  the 
accidental  and  intentional  in  individual  cases,  if  there  is  such  a  distinction.  But  accidental  acrostics  do  occur 
with  a  frequency  which  can  be  approximately  determined.  The  question  is  this;  "  Is  the  frequency  indicated 
in  the  diagrams  so  exceptional  and  unusual  as  to  signify  intention  .'  " 

The  only  serious  and  searching  criticism  of  Mr.  Booth's  work  which  I  have  seen  is  in  the  form  of  a 
letter  in  the  New  Tori  Nation  in  the  issue  of  Jan.  ao,  1910,  from  Prof.  Frederick  E.  Pierce  of  Yale 
University.  His  mathematical  demonstration  appears  not  to  meet  the  facts  presented  in  this  paper.  It  may 
be  that  a  development  of  Prof.  Pierce's  method  will  solve  the  problem  that  those  facts  present. 

t Notice  that  all  six  permutations  in  the  order  of  the  three  name«  ANTHONIE,  BEN  AND 
FRANCIS  are  to  be  found. 


AND  HIS  THREE  FRIENDS  55 

Substantially  every  expression  of  address  applied  by  Ferdinand 
to  Berowne,  Dumaine  and  Longauill  also  appears  as  if  applied  in 
acrostic  to  Anthonie  Bacon,  Ben  lonson  and  Francis  Bacon,  and 
the  only  time  that  Ferdinand  refers  to  himself  alone  (in  the  words 
"  with  me  ")  a  curious  acrostic  reveals  the  name  "  William  Shakes- 
peare." Do  these  facts  suggest  that  "  William  Shakespeare "  is 
addressing  Anthonie  Bacon,  Ben  lonson  and  Francis  Bacon  ? 

Do  the  "  exposed  "  words  suggest  a  secret  pact  on  the  part 
of  the  "  interior  "  or  acrostic  characters,  as  well  as  on  the  part  of 
the  exterior  characters  ? 

QUESTIONS  FOR  THE  SHAKESPEAREAN 

Granting  for  a  moment  the  truth  of  the  tradition  that  the  actor, 
the  dramatist,  the  householder  of  Stratford  were  one  and  the  same 
man,  on  what  other  ground  than  surmise  and  supposition  have 
been  based  the  whole  critical  analysis  of  the  plays  and  of  col- 
laboration in  the  plays  and  selection  and  rejection  in  the  formation 
of  the  "  canon  "  ? 

Is  there  any  actual  proof  that  Peele  and  Greene  and  Marlowe 
and  Fletcher  had  the  part  in  this  or  that  work  that  "  Orthodox  " 
criticism  assigns  one  or  the  other  ? 

Why  may  we  not  question  whether  others  may  not  have  had 
as  great  or  an  even  greater  part  in  the  greatest  literary  works  in  the 
English  language  ? 

And  if  we  name  Anthonie  or  Francis  Bacon,  or  Walter  Raleigh 
or  Ben  lonson  or  others  as  possible  collaborators,  is  there  any 
occasion  for  excitement  or  crimination  ? 

Are  you  not  making  the  same  mistakes  in  your  methods  of 
"  defense  "  that  other  "  standpatters  "  have  made  since  the  world 
began  ? 

Why  not  look  for  the  truth  instead  of  defending  an  alleged 
truth  ? 

QUESTIONS  FOR  THE  BACONIAN 

Granting  that  Francis  and  Anthonie  Bacon  and  Ben  lonson, 
or  either  of  them  had  a  hand  in  any  or  all  of  the  Shakespeare 
writings,  what  are  the  facts  that  warrant  most  of  the  attacks  made 


56  WILLIAM  SHAKESPEARE 

by  "  High  Baconians  "  on  the  reputed  genius  of  Stratford  and 
of  London  ? 

The  paucity  of  knowledge  and  evidence  is  the  basis  on  which 
a  great  deal  of  surmise  (and  even  nonsense)  in  regard  to  the  "man 
of  Stratford  "  may  properly  be  discarded.  Is  it  reasonable  to  build 
on  the  same  paucity  of  evidence  a  theory  regarding  this  same  man, 
equally  baseless,  but  going  to  the  other  extreme  ? 

For  all  that  we  know  he  may  or  may  not  have  been  a  "  divine 
poet,"  or  an  "  unlettered  rustic."  From  what  we  know  we  can 
prove  neither. 

A  PLEA  FOR  FAIRNESS 

To  both  Baconians  and  Shakespeareans  it  may  well  appear  that 
no  one  has  yet  reached  the  whole  truth  in  regard  to  the  mooted 
authorship  and  that  only  by  patient  and  persevering  research  can 
the  truth  be  reached. 

Perhaps  it  may  be  clear  also  that  only  a  comparatively  few  of 
the  men  on  either  (or  any)  side  of  this  question  have  really  in- 
vestigated the  subject  personally,  and  that  of  those  who  have  done 
so,  there  are  men  of  learning,  of  judgment,  and  of  eminence  to  be 
found  on  both  sides. 

Let  us  not  then  assume  that  the  holding  of  any  opinion  on  this 
subject  is  prima  facie  evidence  either  of  superior  wisdom  or  of 
mental  aberration.  Why  should  not  reasonable  men  treat  this, 
one  of  the  most  interesting  literary  problems  ever  propounded,  as 
a  fair  open  question,  and  treat  each  other  accordingly  ? 

CONCLUSION 

In  conclusion  I  wish  to  state  that  the  first  and  last  pages  of 
most  of  the  quartos  and  many  of  the  title  pages,  are  rich  in  acrostics, 
often  repeated  in  the  same  passage,  and  often  grouped  so  that 
the  same  combinations  occur  in  closely  related  passages. 

These  acrostics,  if"  intentional  "  and  "  exclusive,"  indicate  that 
certain  names,  sometimes  four,  sometimes  three,  oftener  two,  (but 
these  two  in  all  cases)  have  been  inserted  in  the  text  for  some  pur- 
pose. What  that  purpose  was,  and  whose,  is  a  subject  that  demands 
careful  study,  if  an  intentional  acrostic  process  be  first  determined. 


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Enter  Ferdinand  K.of  Nauar>  Bcrowne, 

Lmgatiilt^aitdDioniutte. 

Vardmand, 

LET  Fame^hat  all  biint  after  in  tiheirlyueSy 
LiDe  re^flmi  vpon  out  brazen  Tombes, 
And  th«fi  grace  v$,in  the  di^raoe  oTdeatb: 
When^lSitorcomioTantdeuoaringTiiQ^ 
Tbemleiiour  ofthtf  prefeDt  breath  raay  buy: 
That  honour  whi<h  (hall  bate  his  fythes  keene  ec^ 
And  make  vs  hdres  ofall  ctemttic. 
Therefore  brauc  Conqucrours,fbrro  vou  ar^ 
That  vwtrc  agapftyour  owneaffieAiods, 
And  the  hudge  armie  of  the  vorldes  defires* 
Our  late  ediu  (hall  flrongly  ftand  in  ferce> 
2\^A2^fliall  bethewonoerof  tbeworlde. 
Our  Couft  fltalbe  a  lytlle  Acfaadem^ 
Still  and  contemplatyue  in  lyning  ert 
You  three,  Titrmne,  'Dumahte,  and  Ltm^auitl; 
Hanefwomefbr  three  yeeresteamie,  toliue  wtibiae? 
My  Mow  Schoilen,and  to  keepc  thofe  flatwes 
That  arerecoided  in  this  fednle  ncre. 
Your  odKS  arepafl,8od  now  fi^fcribeyowtismes} 
Thathisownehandmav  lUlke his  honour  downCj 
That  violates  the  fftalteK  branch  herein» 
Ifyouarearmd  to  do,atrv*onrnctode, 
Sobfcribe  to  your  deepcothes,  and  keepe  k  to. 

Leygauiil.  I  am  reToiuedith  batathceyeeresFafl: 
The  minde  (htVl  ban<]«ei,though  the  body  pine, 
fn  paunches  hatie  leant  paiet:  and  daynty  bits 
Make  rich  the  ribbes.bui  banerout  <]uite  ine  wit<« 

^Dtmuwu,  My  k>uine  Lord,  Dumaiiu  a  mottefied, 
Theatoffer  manner  o/the(e  worldisdelyghtsi 
JEikoaowes  vppon  the  groile  wotklibaferflsiKS 


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